International Shortwave Radio Stations - 5 Easy Catches for North American Listeners

Individuals who are new to the hobby of shortwave radio listening might find themselves unwillingly tuning into a mass of incomprehensible static noise. Without a basic understanding of broadcast times, schedules or frequencies just finding regular programming on the shortwave dial can be a hit or miss endeavor. Many factors including the cost of transmission, transmitter availability, location and propagation conditions can affect the availability of shortwave programming. However, with a little insight into how the big international shortwave broadcasters operate getting a strong signal via even an inexpensive portable shortwave radio costing less than $50 such as the Kaito 1107 or a similar receiver should be possible from many North American locations year round even without an elaborate antenna setup.

At present among the easiest to catch shortwave radio programming transmissions available for listening in the south central United States are Radio Taiwan International, China Radio International, Radio Japan, Radio Canada International, and Voice of America. Broadcasts from these five stations have proven themselves for the most part to be reliable as well as offer a variety of interesting programming including news, music, special interest focused segments and, for those who enjoy a challenge, occasional foreign language lessons. With the exception of Voice of America these stations put a special focus on programming in the English language intended for target audiences in North America. The variety of programming available on shortwave radio is seemingly unlimited and there are without a doubt numerous other shortwave broadcasters, both domestic and international, available for Americans to tune into. Even so, for many listeners transmissions put together by these five big dogs should be a snap to find on the dial.

As they update from time to time, programming schedules can either be obtained directly from the broadcasters themselves (see the international shortwave broadcasters links in the sidebar of this blog) or from additional website resources such as Prime Time Shortwave or Glenn Hauser's World of Radio.


Links to example summaries of reception reports from four of the major international shortwave broadcasters listed above are posted below:

Radio Japan example reception report

Radio Taiwan example reception report

China Radio International example reception report

Voice of America example reception report

Shortwave Radio QSL Cards for Confirmation and Collection

It almost goes without saying that in today's modern world many terrestrial based radio broadcasters face significant headwinds with regard to maintaining operations. Citadel Broadcasting's Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing last December and the debatable ongoing debt struggles of media giants such as CBS Broadcasting serve as testaments to the magnitude and reaches of current challenges in the ever changing world of radio. The questionable economic environment appears to have taken a significant toll in media and advertising particularly as we stare headlong into the cauldron of what some more pessimistic types might even regard as a full fledged depression.

To make matters even more complicated the underlying transition to increasingly internet based technologies have meant that many broadcasters have had to weigh options with regard to what the future might hold. In the world of shortwave radio, Radio Sweden has recently announced that it plans to terminate international English language shortwave broadcasts in lieu of internet programming. Land based radio broadcasters are not alone in the struggle to stay alive in the present environment. They have been joined recently by the United States Post Office which has taken rate increases and speculation of service cutbacks as well as location closures to new levels. Regardless, fortunately for those of us who still very much appreciate the inner workings of old fashioned goods and services without considering ourselves to be completely neo-luddite in nature it seems somehow comforting to know that there are still a few traditional shortwave radio broadcasters operating with vigor throughout the radio spectrum. Many of them not only send signals out via high powered energy hogging terrestrial based transmitter sites but they also somehow manage to utilize the postal service as a means of communication from time to time.

The practice of sending or receiving a QSL in order to confirm receipt of radio transmission in writing is thought to date back quite some time, perhaps close to the origins of the development and commercialization of early radio broadcasting about a century ago. At present many modern day broadcasters and postage weary parties have moved on to utilize electronic means of communication such as email for QSLing. In fact, it wasn't long before Radio Sweden officially called its international shortwave broadcast services quits that the station had set out to cease mailing printed QSL cards to listeners and had outlined plans to turn to the internet for confirmation of broadcast communications.

In every business or industry there are times when processes change or some participants simply feel the need to reign in excesses in order to make ends meet. We are without a doubt living in uncertain times for many but for the time being there nonetheless still remains a number of both shortwave radio broadcasters and shortwave radio listeners who correspond with one another regarding the timing, quality and subject matter of shortwave radio broadcasts the old fashioned way - via postal mail. Collections of printed QSL cards can serve to attest as a sort of proof of the actual receipt of shortwave transmissions by listeners. On the other hand, the written feedback provided to broadcasters in reception report loggings enables broadcast stations to get a feel for their audiences and better understand the quality of their transmissions.

Perhaps the best part of hand written or printed QSL correspondence is that cards and letters are not only tangible with a three dimensional character but also that they tend to stand up to events such as hard drive crashes, personal computer firestorms or power outages a whole lot better than electronic QSLs. While many cash strapped broadcasters or "eco freindly" types might readily consider paper QSLs to be left over relics of the past, the author strongly feels that the excitement of receiving a printed or written QSL card from a rare shortwave catch in the post office box can be a whole lot more satisfying than simply opening an email.

Many radio related sources available online have spent time compiling general guidelines for requesting QSL cards from broadcasters such as how to report the time and date, quality of radio transmissions or general programming observations. Overall, as many shortwave broadcasts are intended to be international it is accepted practice to use coordinated universal time (UTC) format for time and date and the (SINPO) format for reporting quality of transmissions. The National Radio Club, a medium wave (AM) radio club, has put together a very nicely compiled format for filling out reception reports. The club's document can be downloaded in pdf format from the NRC website at http://www.nrcdxas.org/SAForms/QSLform.pdf and printed out. Most broadcasters should be happy with reports compiled in a similar fashion but on occasion it is not unusual for transmissions to provide more specific details regarding requests from listeners. As reception reports to broadcasters should be helpful it should serve well to provide any additional feedback with regard to the programming as well as local weather conditions, etc. which could affect transmissions.

Also useful when confirming mailing addresses of shortwave broadcaster's are publications such as Passport to World Band Radiowhich provide detailed contact information. Even when following a standard format for contacting broadcasters it makes good sense that listeners attempting to correspond via postal service might wish to consider the current state of the economy when writing for QSL card confirmation. At present it seems likely that many smaller or independent broadcasters would greatly appreciate at the very least a couple of stamps or a small donation in order to make up for postage costs. The reward of looking back through an old box full of dated QSL cards from shortwave broadcasters around the world can seem easily worth a few pennies and the time spent to sit down and write a few short lines.